In a classic example of the Australian way, two blokes wore thongs while meeting the Queen at the dockyards in Carrington in April 1970.
Wayne Jones, the dark-haired fella wearing thongs, was 18 at the time and an apprentice electrician at the dockyards.
"They knocked us off early on the condition we get in our street clothes and hang about [to greet the Queen]," Wayne said.
"In the picture, everybody is wearing the clothes they wore to work. The standard uniform for young blokes in them days was jeans, T-shirts and jean jackets."
An authentic variety of Australian attire was on display, as the Queen walked out the back entrance of the apprentice training centre - also known as boys' town.
As well as thongs, you might spot a pair of slippers and sandals and a couple of flannos.
As well as Aussies, the Queen was also greeted by her fellow countrymen.
"The dockyard had a lot of English workers there. They used to have immigrant huts right next to the floating dock. The only ones who weren't happy to see the Queen were the Scots," Wayne said.
Naomi Jones spotted her dad Wayne in the photo, which the Herald published online in coverage of the Queen's death.
Naomi, of Swansea, told Topics that she was "quite chuffed" with the photo.
All the hullabaloo around the Queen's passing isn't everyone's cup of tea, but Naomi said she appreciates the royals.
"I think they should still be around, given how much charity and good they do in the world," she said.
Naomi met the Queen when she was living in the Channel Islands in her 20s in 2001.
"My boss gave me the morning off, but I said I don't care if I see the Queen or not. He said 'your mum will care, so make sure you go and see her'.
"She came and talked to me and my friends. We were draped in the Australian flag."
At the time, she didn't think the royals were relevant to her life.
"But I was quite sad that she passed. She was really an amazing woman. As young Australians, you don't really pay that much attention to them."
Even older Australians who don't mind the royals, though, are a bit over the saturation coverage.
"I'm sort of all queened out at the moment, I think we're going to get 10 days of mourning on the television," Wayne said.
"Unless you're a deadset royal, it might turn a few more people into republicans."
Wayne was involved in the three visits the Queen made to Newcastle from 1970 to 1988.
He was at a protest in 1977 when Her Majesty's Yacht Britannia was at Throsby Wharf.
"Malcolm Fraser was due to come up and travel back to Sydney with her on the boat," Wayne said.
The then prime minister was under fire over a lack of work at the state dockyard.
"A lot of guys were going to lose their jobs. So we all turned up at the wharf to protest. I assume the Queen was on the Britannia.
"We managed to throw a lot of tomatoes at Fraser's car."
In 1988, the Britannia sailed into Newcastle through the heads.
"I was working on the tugs that came in with it," Wayne said.
"So on three separate occasions, I was a tiny ant in history."
We're all tiny ants, really. Except for the Queen. She was more of a queen bee.
- topics@newcastleherald.com.au
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